Sir Keir Starmer has said the Government is “looking at all options to support our people” as a flight from Abu Dhabi landed in London. Etihad Airways flight EY67, carrying stranded UK nationals, departed from the United Arab Emirates capital on Monday afternoon and touched down at Heathrow’s Terminal 4 at 7.17pm, according to flight tracking company Flightradar24.
The Prime Minister told the Commons that the situation on the ground “may remain challenging for some time” and urged all British citizens in the region to register their presence. “We’re sending rapid deployment teams to the region to support our British nationals on the ground,” he said, adding that the FCDO phone lines are open for consular support.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper indicated that 102,000 British nationals had registered their presence in the region, with a total of about 300,000 British citizens in Gulf countries targeted by Iran. The Foreign Office is advising against all but essential travel to Jordan, and those in Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Palestine, Qatar and the UAE have been urged to register online.
Airspace closures across the Middle East have grounded many commercial flights since the attacks began on Saturday. More than a third of scheduled flights from the UK to the region on Monday were cancelled. British Airways cancelled a number of flights, while Virgin Atlantic axed two flights to Heathrow from Dubai and Riyadh. EasyJet and BA also cancelled some flights to Cyprus after a drone hit RAF Akrotiri.
In a post on X, the Government of Dubai Media Office said airlines Emirates and Flydubai would begin operating a limited number of flights, prioritising customers with earlier bookings. Etihad Airways announced that its scheduled commercial flights to and from Abu Dhabi remain suspended until 14:00 UAE time (10:00 GMT) on Wednesday March 4, but some repatriation flights may operate.
Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, reminded passengers that those affected by cancellations “must be offered the choice of a refund or rerouting on airlines that are still flying.” The Government continues to monitor the situation and is working on contingency plans if airspace remains closed.
